8.17.2011

August 17, 2011

White Dog and The White Dog Army Wonderful World WednesdayWhite Dog loves this Japanese folktale of the hummingbird in the forest fire. While other animals run in fear or hang their heads in despair, the hummingbird flies above the fire time and again, releasing a few drops of water from its tiny beak. "Why do you bother?" the animals shout. "I'm doing the best that I can," the hummingbird replies. It reminds the WDA that it is not about HOW much you give but rather that you give your BEST.

This is a lesson that Michael struggles to learn as he becomes more a part of our family and is sometimes overwhelmed by how much need there is in the world. He often throws up his hands in frustration and says things like, “They asked for a donation but I only had fifty cents.” He is not alone in his frustration to not be able to do more, White Dog suspects. In these economic times, even the most generous are being forced to make tough decisions and have less available to share.

There ARE ways to help without it costing money. Time spent helping at a rescue or volunteering at the food pantry or collecting signatures for a cause you believe in are all very valuable—and—generous steps toward making the World better. But time, too, is a rare commodity for many, and often your available time simply does not correspond to times needed for these types of projects. White Dog has found some ideas that let you make a difference; to help…anytime day or night…and you don’t even have to move off the keyboard of your computer.

Five Ways to Give without Spending a Dime: You'd like to give more to charity, but your meager income won't allow it. Fortunately, we've rounded up five great sites that let you contribute to charitable causes without spending a single dime.
By Kathryn Hawkins. http://gimundo.com/ Posted on July 07 2011Even if you write out a check to every charity that sends you a handwritten letter and a photo of a pleading child each Christmas, you can’t help thinking that it’s never enough –with the money you’ve got left over after paying for all your bills and basic necessities, you’ll never be able to fund a school in Africa, or to give a family enough food to keep their bellies full for even a single week. Your paltry donation might buy a few extra pens and stamps for the nonprofit organization you sent it to, but that’s about it.

But don’t worry –even if you’re not in Donald Trump territory, you can still donate to a variety of great causes every day without spending a single penny. All you need is an Internet connection, and you’re good to go. Here are a few of our favorite free ways to give.

The Hunger Site (www.thehungersite.com) This site features click buttons for six different causes: hunger, child health, breast cancer, literacy, the rainforest, and animal rescue. The concept is simple: Just click the button for each cause once every day, and the site’s sponsors will make a charitable donation on your behalf. If you purchase an item from the site’s online store, they’ll donate even more. It takes just thirty seconds a day to make a difference in someone’s life without spending a cent –make this site a daily stop. Better yet, make it your home page, so you won’t start a single day without chipping in. Purchases from The Rescue Site gift shop generate donations of bowls of food based on your total (at least 14 bowls per order).

Ripple (www.ripple.org) Ripple works exactly the same way as the Hunger Site, funding clean water, food, education, and a $100 loan with your daily click. Ripple also features a Google-powered search bar, which makes a donation every time you use it. To get all your friends in on the giving act, add Ripple’s “give” button directly to your blog or Facebook page.

Free Rice (www.freerice.com) This site is a grandfather of click to giving, but it’s such a great concept that we had to bring it up again. The site features a vocabulary game, where every correct answer you choose donates 20 grains of rice to an impoverished country. Play as long and as often as you like –you’re bound to pick up a few SAT words while saving the world.

Free Poverty (www.freepoverty.com) Have you ever played the Facebook staple, Traveler IQ, where you score points by locating cities and landmarks on an unmarked map? This game is just like that, but better –with every correct answer, the site donates 10 cups of water to a poor country on your behalf. It might make you feel like an idiot for the first few rounds when you realize you can’t even locate the Statue of Liberty, but the fact that you’re making a difference should soften the blow a bit.

GoodSearch (www.goodsearch.com) Are you passionate about fighting poverty? Want to save the whales? Are you committed to curing breast cancer? No matter what your cause is, you can find a way to support it through the philanthropic search engine tool, GoodSearch. Simply type in the name of the organization you want to support, and GoodSearch will donate 50% of its advertising revenue to your charity of choice. With 54,000 organizations already registered, you’re bound to find a cause that you believe in. Once a few people hop on board, the funds add up fast: If a charity has 10,000 supporters who each use the search tool twice a day,that can add up to $73,000 in donations for the year. Best of all, GoodSearch recently added a GoodShop tool, which allows you to donate a percentage of the cost of your purchases to the charity of your choice. The store choices include all the big names like Amazon, Best Buy, and Travelocity, so be sure to click through from the site whenever you’re planning a new purchase –you’ll finally have an excuse to feel good about shopping!

To this list, The White Dog Army would add their favorite, Save-A-Dog (http://saveadog.dogtime.com/users/365369?&referrer=365369). If you are crazy about dogs and want to support animal rescue efforts by helping to keep real dogs out of shelters and in good homes, now you can. This is where we originally learned of Nuka who came to be part of our family. There is also a Save A Cat site (www.facebook.com/SaveACat).

Simply browse photos of real-life adoptable dogs, and choose one to virtually “foster.” Invite your friends to co-foster your dog, or send them a different dog to foster, and you’ll draw much-needed attention to thousands of dogs living in shelters and with rescue groups all across the country. The more you spread the word, the greater the chances these dogs will find happy and loving homes. For every 2,500 points you score by clicking to pet a dog, walk a dog, share a playdate or virtually volunteer at a rescue, the financial equivalent of a cup of food is donated to RescueGroups.org, a non-profit organization that provides free and low-cost technology services to animal shelters and rescue groups across the country. The more points you earn, the more dogs you help save!

The Other White Dog and Still Another White Dog know there are other similar sites out there…and we encourage you to leave comments sharing them. The point is making the World Wonderful has to do with what’s in your heart not in your wallet…have a Wonderful Day!

This is the most amazing post. It is so easy to get overwhelmed and throw your paws or hands up in there in helplessness ...but there is always a way to help and every little bit makes a difference and contributes to the greater good!

I know exactly what story you are talking about, because,,, I have the book right here,,,"The flight of the hummingbird".It is true,,,even one drop can help. You shared so many ways to help,,,, you are amazing!Thank you so muchlovetweedles

You are such loving caring people and the post is very full of useful info. I hope many more follow the lead. Sorry been missing and only saw what haappened to your mum in the park. I am so glad you are safe and that you were all vigilant and looked after your mum.. Hugs GJ xx

I read about your scary experience as I perused all the posts that I'd missed. I'm so glad that the WDA prevented any harm to you and that you're still feeling confident about your safety. I hope that they all got big cheeseburgers that day!